The subject matter disclosed herein relates to welding and, more specifically, to hybrid welding.
Welding can be utilized for a variety of manufacturing or repair processes in multiple different industrial settings. For example, welding can be utilized to join multiple components, repair cracks, gaps or defects in used components, build up material in used or new components, or otherwise weld or join one or more components as needed for a particular application. However, the ability or speed that welding can occur can be limited by a number of factors including the thickness of the components being welded and the power of the welding apparatus.
Hybrid welding can combine the utilization of both laser welding and arc welding to potentially weld at a faster rate while still achieving full penetration. However, as components become thicker, an increase in laser power may still be required for full penetration. The configuration of the laser welder and the arc welder may thereby be adjusted to influence the weld result. For example, hybrid welding can include using a leading laser welder followed by a forehand arc welder to provide relatively smooth welds. However, such configurations may be limited in the depth of weld penetration due to the laser impinging on a relatively cold base material and the arc not being able to build up a strong and stable keyhole through the entire welding process. Conversely, hybrid welding can alternatively include using a trailing laser welder that follows a backhand arc welder to provide deeper penetration than the previously described configuration. However, such configurations can create relatively rough and narrow weld surfaces that require subsequent processing to finish the welded surface.
Accordingly, alternative hybrid welding apparatuses, systems and methods would be welcome in the art.